ABSTRACT
One problem in designing an educational exhibition is that the details of the physical structure are not easy to decide at the outset in comparison with a traditional, object-based exhibition, because the concepts to be communicated may call for novel forms of presentation. A further difficulty is that the physical structure should, besides housing the various media, give tangible form to the intellectual argument being presented. Thus, if the visitor is to know what is going on, it helps if he can see relatively easily how the major ideas of the exhibition come together into groups and how the groups relate to each other, as in the analogous case of a text-book organised into chapters. A third consideration is the overall floor plan, which largely determines the order in which the exhibits are seen. And, because considerable physical effort may be involved in visiting an exhibition, the floor plan determines the circulation to a much greater extent than the chapters determine the order in which a text-book is read. And, finally, there is the question of pacing, the attempt to strike a balance between consistency (and therefore coherence) and novelty. In deciding on which media to deploy, and on details of physical form, it is important to avoid overwhelming the visitor with variety, and at the same time avoid boring him with the sameness of presentation.
